Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Teachable Moments

I've been thinking a lot about teachable moments lately. I feel like my mind has been very aware on a daily basis when an opportunity arises that I can either 1) handle a situation myself and/or give my kids a quick answer like "because" or "you're to little to understand" or 2) take advantage of a teachable moment with my children. For example, when crossing the street with my three year old, I can simply grab his hand and tell him when to cross the street. I can also hold his hand, ask him to look both ways and tell me if cars or coming, and explain that we do this so that we stay safe when crossing streets. See the difference? Take it to a little deeper level. The other day "A" was singing along to the song, "You Never Let Go," by Matt Redman. A part of me just wanted to say, "that's nice singing "A"," and leave it at that. However, a little alarm went off in my head and it said, "TEACHABLE MOMENT!" So, I began to talk to her about the lyrics of the song, what it meant that Jesus would never let go of us during the storms of life, what the phrase 'every high and every low,' meant, etc. It ended up being a really meaningful conversation that I was able to have with my daughter about how awesome Jesus is and how he's always there for her! I love this verse, Psalm 34:11, "Come my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord." I hope that I can do that for my kids. Now, I'm not saying I never miss an opportunity, but I've learned that when I ask God to make me aware of teachable moments with my kids, he never disappoints. It is so rewarding to see your children understand something new, whether it's a simple life maintenance skill, Biblical truth, or academic achievement, knowing you were the one that taught them how to do that. Once again, when it comes to teachable moments, I have seen my spiritual life reflecting what God is teaching me in my parenting.
A few weeks ago during our small group, we were discussing Jesus talking to his disciples about who was going to be the greatest in the kingdom of God. As usual the disciples were arguing and just not getting it. However, Jesus didn't rebuke them, he took advantage of the moment, and used it as a teachable moment. Mark 9: 33-37, " They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, 'What were you arguing about on the road?' But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest. Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, 'If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and a servant of all.' He took a little child an had him stand among them. Taking him in his arms he said to them, 'Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.'" I feel like if I was Jesus, I would have been thinking, "Seriously guys, haven't we talked about this before? Just do what I say, no questions!" However, Jesus took the time to explain, and created a teachable moment for his disciples. Luckily for me, Jesus is willing to take advantage of teachable moments with me too. He's willing and wanting to teach me new things about his character, his love, and his word, just to name a few. We never have to worry that we're going to get a pat answer from God. He delights in seeing his children grasp a new truth.
I encourage you to pray this week and ask God to show you teachable moments with your kids. When it seems easier and quicker just to do it ourselves, or give a blow off answer, I hope we would choose to teach and grow our kids instead. I also pray that we will take the time to sit at the feet of the ultimate teacher and glean from all he wants to teach us.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Fear Not!

About a month or two ago, I wrote a post about how God had me on the verge of learning some new things about myself and some of the insecurities I've been carrying through life. I have been continuing to seek God and learn about these issues a lot over the past several weeks. I have come to realize that at the core of my insecurities lies a huge helping of fear. Fear of being rejected, loneliness, and unknowns in general. God has really challenged me and enabled me to battle those fears with a heavy dose of God's truth.
I am still going through Beth Moore's study on the book of Esther, and I have been blessed beyond belief. A few weeks ago she addressed the issue of fear, and I felt that many of her words were specifically for me. She focussed on Esther 4:16, where Esther comes to a point where she can say these well known words, "And if I perish, then I perish." That's when Beth got personal. She asked, what is the, "If ____, Then_____," that we are struggling with in our own lives. She explained that so often we pray that God will keep our greatest fears from happening, and/or remove them from our lives. It is not wrong to pray that way, and often God may choose to do just that. However, we need to come to a point in our lives where can say, if (fill in the blank) happens, then, (God is still good, He will comfort me, He will be my peace, He will heal my broken heart, etc.). Wow... for me that is quite a huge undertaking. Immediately my mind goes to something happening to Bill or the kids, or something happening to my marriage, etc. Can I honestly be as brave as Esther and say, "If ______, then______!" We must address these fears in our lives, because how we respond to the "then_____" tells a lot about what we truly believe about God. Is he really all we need? Do we really believe he loves us and cares for us? I am not saying that if something devastating happened in our lives, that it wouldn't cause great pain and suffering for us. However, if we live our lives in fear and bondage to those "what ifs?" we will rob our lives of so much joy. I John 4 has always been one of my favorite books, I love verses 16-18, "And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgement, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do w/ punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." Wow... again. If I truly believe that God loves me, I cannot live a life of fear. I must trust and have faith in every circumstance.
That leads me to another thought. So far, I've focussed on fear of the "worst case scenario." However, what do I do with those day to day fears. Those things I fear because they make life inconvenient, uncomfortable, and seemingly unenjoyable. I am talking about things like my fear of fitting in, fear of that person who makes work so difficult, fear that my child will never overcome some behavior that drives me crazy, etc. Am I sinning and being ruled by fear when I dread contact with those unpleasantries. Am I letting my fears steal the joy that God desires for my life? James 1:2-4 are verses that we would often like to ignore, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." It doesn't say that we are to just survive trials. It doesn't say that we are to pray that God keeps all trials out of our life or that he removes them as soon as they arrive. No, he says, "Consider it PURE JOY!" It's as though we are to be grateful that he loves us enough to give us trials because he wants to make us better. He wants to make us "mature and complete, not lacking anything."
I challenge us all to face our fears head on. Maybe you are going through a worst case scenario type fear, that shakes the very core of who you are and what you believe. Or maybe you're like me and need to find a way to choose joy in the midst of some day to day fears. I love the song, "Whatever You're Doing," by Sanctus Real. There is a line that grabs me every time I hear it, and I think it applies to either type of fear we deal with. It says, "Whatever you're doing inside of me, it feels like chaos, but somehow there's peace. It's hard to surrender to what I don't see, but I'm giving into something heavenly." This has been my prayer for my own life as I've been dealing with this issue. I hope it will serve as an encouragement to any who read as well. Finally, cling to truth of the following verses in Isaiah 41:10 & 13, "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand... For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you!"